Spanish Eyes
by goth wmorals
Summary: After leaving Raccoon City, Billy Coen retreats to Spain, but 2 years later Umbrella resurfaces again, this time in Barcelona. Chapter 4 Something has happend in Umbrella's Labortories.
1. Chapter 1

"Hombre joven, usted tienen gusto otro?" the bar's owner asked the man leaning on his folded arm on the countertop in front of him. Stirring his thin coffee straw, fixated on the two ice cubes circling in his glass, bits of waterdrops fell on the its left side. "Young man?" the barkeep asked a bit louder taping his finger next to the man's glass. "Oh, sorry." looking up from his glass of ice "Yes, I'd like anouther." "Eh, no problem. Hehe." with a gruff chuckle the barkeep poured some liquour into Billy's glass from a rather small bottle.  
  
Turing his head twards the door, small hints of warmth shown in from the morning rays of the small yellow tinted windows of the door. Being in a bar at 9 in the morning wasn't going through Billy Coen's mind, but nothing much else was either. The oblonged panes of glass in the window bent the light, making waves of yellow shine on the bar's few tables and chairs. Morning light always made the dust in the air more visible, it felt as if it had a vintage feel to the small room. The peaceful rays were interrupted by a large framed man walked in from behind the door, yellow light outlined his figure, a shadow cast on the table. The man's metal tipped boots tapped on the wooden planks of the bar's floor as the bell on a string above the door jingled, signaling a new customer. Slamming the door behind him with a loud reverberating sound, Billy rubbed his eyes with a slight groan. The large man sat on the stool next to Billy, his leather pants making crumpled noises as he tried to make himself comfortable on a tall wooden stool. "Hey, ya'll mind if I turned on the T.V.?" "No problemo senor." The large leather man took the remote and began surfing through the black and white staticy television which sat on the tabletop in front of him. "Another loud tourist" the barkeep thought with an obvious shake of his head. He sat a bottle of the bar's finest drink next to the new customer. "Beer senor?"  
  
"Two years since it's been" Billy thought to himself. His mind replaying that night he thought would be his last. Fighting monsters he would never have belived existed, a crazy old man, a nasty leach monster, runing away from a building that housed horror blowing up. "Running away.." he paused, remembering a short girl that stayed by his side to survive, leaving her go on her own way as he went back to Raccoon City and then arriving in Barcelona, here. He had checked his file soon after, his name and his declaration of death, Rebecca kept her word, she saved him, he would no longer need to run. The whirl of static from the television of wrestling stations, to the news to a Spanish soap opera. "Man, there isn't anything on this old box." an annoyed sounding leather man. "Heh." Billy said as a breath of air came from his lips. "Leave on one channel, I dont have fancy cable here!" the barkeep rightfully angry at the leather man. "Oh fine." and he stoped his channel surfing, and consentrating more on drinking his half bottle of beer.  
  
Billy sliding his finger on the underside of the strap on his black tank shirt, barely listening to the sounds of the bar. Picking up his glass of clear liqour he took a drink, the cold liquid felt good traveling down his throat. "And with us now is young cheif scientist of Spain's Umbrella Company, Dr. Howard Allen." the perky voice of a female reporter could be herd above the delayed translation in Spanish which they oddly matched with a lower female voice. "Umbrella?.." Billy set his glass on the table and turned the top half of his body to face the small television.   
  
A thin young man draped in an oversized black lab coat held his face close to the reporter's microphone. His voice was almost timid in speaking, " Uh, yes ma'am. We are comming out with a new line of um, beauty products that can totally erase all wrinkles and scars on the face.." he brushed a few strands of pitch black hairs from his eyes which his bangs still coverd "It's completly safe and we plan to have our product out on shelves in Spain in a few weeks after the American release." Then the lower mainlier voice dubbed it in Spanish after. "And now back to Como el mundo se desmenuza!" the view switched back to a man and woman in red passionately kissing.  
  
"I hate soap operas" the leather man whined. "Its all fake lovey-dovey and dramatic music. Oh I love you Sandra, but I'm in love with Emily. But I am having your baby!" he said in his most highest voice, mocking a bad soap opera cast. The barkeep laughed heartly dispite just yelling at the man for almost wrecking his television."Turistas" the barkeep shook his head with a smile, taking out a few wet mugs and started drying them with a towel on his shoulder, going back to his early morning work.  
  
"Umbrella..again?" the blue eyed Billy Coen asked himself, frowning his eyebrows. "What are they doing here?" He slid his hand in his back pocket of his black slacks, a crumpled up piece of paper rolled between his fingers. Pulling his arms to the front, he set them both on the countertop, he narrowed his eyes at the paper, his thumb tracing the few small black letters of his handwriting. Flipping the paper he read an address carefully written out on the back. Along finding his death certificate, he found where the person who declared it was. Billy slid the paper under his finger, his nail catching a few torn slits, its worn out and almost faded from being folded in his pocket for some time now. "She's probably not even there anymore..." His eyes flashed with the thought of them both just escaping death many times, all from the same company that's come back.  
  
Billy stared unblinking at the shelves lined with half empty coloured bottles in front of him. His mind set in thought, he saw himself and Rebecca saying a short goodbye on the edge of the cliff, the same morning light rising over blurry rows of trees. Placid light that they survied, unknowned dangers awaited both of them on their seperate ways. A shaky eyed girl saluting the former leuitenant, trying to leave with a strait face, Billy couln't help but replay watching her leave back into the forest, "Thankyou, Rebecca."  
  
"Otro?" Billy's flashback ended and his vision came back to the small bar. The barkeep holding Billy's glass of melted ice and a bent straw had asked him. "Oh, no thanks." quickly replying. He stood up, both hands on the countertop, scooting his stool to the side. "Hey..I gotta go." he said with an almost urgent sound in his voice as he pulled out a few dollars from his pocket, sliding it flatly on the counter under his hand. "Thanks for.." looking at the small bottle that contained his drink "..the Vodka." "Gracias, Senor" the barkeep picked up the money after Billy let go.  
  
Walking to the door, his own shoes tapped loudly on the wooden floor. Reaching the door, Billy layed his hand on the edge of the door for a pause, opened it and took a step outside. "Take care young man!" the barkeep called out to Billy with a slight smile. A quiet reply, "Yeah." and Billy Coen stepped outside completely, the door shutting loudly behind him, the soft pale rays of sun layed out around him. 


	2. Chapter 2

Umbrella with its many failed attempts, projects, weapons and of course scientists, was on its last note to   
  
regain the power it once had, an infamous corporation with a double side. The world recognized the red and white logo sealed on most of their medicines and equipment, a pharmaceutical company dedicated to save lives with its patented array of viral cures and advanced medical knowledge. All created from behind doors with horrific experiments of getting such knowledge, but all of this to hide its true intentions of its capabilities with its creators.  
  
Back in retreat in America, Umbrella was almost uncovered of its plots when its creations of the company's first important weapon, the T-Virus seemingly released its main laboratories and into Raccoon City. James Marcus just about destroyed Umbrella with that one act of vengeance, and then along with its other two viruses that were released by its once respected creators. They all had gone insane.   
  
"Idiots." a black haired young man commented to himself as he read his folded over notepad.  
  
One more facility that still stood was located in Spain; Umbrella's European Headquarters. Pretty much abandoned for the much larger and more equipped laboratories in America, however it was Umbrella's last chance. Most of its scientists were either killed, insane, or experimented on if they chose to be too vocal. A few samples of the T-Virus remained as well, loosing the G-Virus to another unknown company, more so stolen they considered. Umbrella wasn't taking anymore chances with loosing the virus again. Upon making themselves known in Western Europe they disguised themselves as a cosmetics company, dedicated to making consumers beautiful.  
  
"Beautify Europe!" quoted the young man, pointing his pencil strait out in front of him. He laughed with some annoyance, "How cheesy is that? He went back to reading his notepad, sketching something abstract on the lined paper with his pencil as he sat with his arm on his knee, supporting his head.  
  
With the money Umbrella was bringing in from its superior cosmetics of the beauty hungry population, funded its few new scientists with certain equipment needed to develop the T-Virus. Howard Allen was one of them, chosen to find a way to incorporate various animal dna into the T-Virus to make a stable and fully controllable bio organic weapon, of cause leeches were not on the plan. However, bats were a different story, Howard's main expertise.  
  
"A few more lines, then.. Huh?" a large blob of water smacked right onto his notepad, instantly blurring the text written in blue ink. Howard turned his head to the side and looked up, the once sunny sky was now covered in one large gray cloud. Another drop of water fell and hit in the middle of his head, he could feel its cold trail run off the side of his head. Then, a few more large drops, and within a few seconds of the first one, a downpour came. "Dimmitt!" holding his notepad to his chest, hiding it with his arms. Standing up from the large stone step he was sitting on in front of the white Umbrella Cosmetics building. Bending down to pick up his portfolio, shoving a few more papers inside the flimsy case. Heading strait ahead, he saw the faded white-gray steps in front of him turn a dark shade of gray with little circles from the rain drops as he ran past them. "Too.. far...away!" Howard huffed, complaining how about many steps must use to reach the main doors. After what seemed to be minutes in the rain, he reached the veranda of the building, and also looked like he had spent minutes in the rain, his hair clinged to his forehead as well as his black lab coat to his arms. The feeling of wet polyester was quite uncomfortable.  
  
Howard ran his fingers through his hair, parting it in separate sections across his eyes. Walking to the main doors made almost of glass, he opened it and a cool blast of the building's air conditioners blew in front of his body as he entered the lobby. Normally, Howard would be annoyed by a sudden blast of temperature change in his face, but it actually felt nice coming in from the outside's warm temperature.  
  
"Hey Howard, how'd the interview go?" a female voice from the main lobby's Reference Desk asked him. "Oh, hi ' Lizibeth." Howard walked over, his shoes loudly tapped on the checkered tiled floor, echoing off the walls of the hugely open room. "It went fine.. you know, same old questions and a rookie reporter." The woman looked up at him with a smile, "You seemed nervous there, where you?" Howard had his eyes facing down on her desk, but he looked up at her when she asked her question, her blonde hair tied in a ponytail, wearing a dark pink shirt with her name on a tag accented her shirt. "Um, yeah. I don't know why. No big deal." She laughed, "Alright then. You'd better get those clothes changed before you get a cold, its freezing in this building." He slid part of his hair behind his ear, "Oh yeah. I will. See you later then. "He turned around rather quickly to leave. "Goodbye!" calling out to him, he waved back and headed across the room for an elevator.  
  
The metal doors of the elevator were tightly sealed, extra security, but most people could still use them to get to the different levels of the building. Pushing the Down Arrow button, it turned green, and the display above the doors lit up the numbers as it counted down to Howard's floor. Shortly it arrived and the doors opened, vacant he stepped inside. A row of buttons from 7 to B lined the wall next to the doors, they were for regular visitors. Right below it a small box locked with a equally small door. Howard took out a key from his coat pocket, put the key in the lock, and opened the door. Inside the little box was a long list of buttons with no labels. Not too much of a problem, "Three.. seven.. fourteen.. twenty one." He stopped and pushed that button. The metal doors slid very slowly shut, and the elevator descended on its journey down to the basement. Howard leaned back against the wall of the elevator, "This thing smells way to much like medicine." noteing the distinqued odor, then looking to the walls itself. A pattern of gold loops boarded the burgundy paint that covered the top half of each side of the walls. A small insignia of Umbrella labeled above the first row of buttons, and the word "Umbrella" engraved on the two doors of the elevator. A few minutes passed and the elevator stopped, a pause and the double doors opened.   
  
Stepping out, the entire room seemed to feel like a metal box, as that was surrounding the area. The floor wasn't made of the clean tile like above, but rather of dark smooth stone. The room itself wasn't large, but many doors and openings aligned the room. In three rows were desks of computers with several pictures and graphs, and in front of each one were test tubes about the size of a man were fixed. Many of them were empty, some were not, but only basic outlines could be seen as dark red water obscured the figure itself. Along the shelves held vials of different chemicals and other liquids. Scientists were either grouped together talking, or rather arguing. Others were walking around with sheets of paper jotting down information shown in the computers. None of the scientists noticed Howard arriving or really cared much. He hardly talks to them unless he needed some advice or opinion, and spent most of his work time in his own lab, which was down the hall to the far right door.  
  
Ten minutes and he still wasn't dry, he made his way to the door quietly, but a scientist walking by noticed him. "Howard! I need to talk to you." "Huh?" Howard stopped right before turning the door knob, he looked behind him. It was a young scientist about his age that was once in his medical class. "Listen, I need your data sheet in three days. I havn't seen any information from you in weeks, nor have I seen any progress in your test subjects." Howard looked to the ground and then to the young man, " I need more time, Kai. I have most of my research written down but I'm' not ready yet." Kai frowned, "You've had allot of time already, I'm sending this follow up report tonight. I must look at your test subject Howard." He turned the door knob, it clicked, and the door opened half way. "Okay.. let's go." The two scientists walked inside the hallway, closing the door behind.  
  
The hallway itself was a long narrow passage with several caged doors on the right side of the stone wall. The two young scientists walked together in silence, except for the sound of Kai clicking his pen. Another door they reached, white with a small thick glass window on the top half of it. Above was a sign labeled "Experiments: Flying" Howard took out his ID card from around his neck, and slid it across the scanner on the door lock. A small beep and the door opened with a hiss, they walked inside and another large metal room looked the same as the first one. They walked across the room, only 5 scientists were there working. The first door on the left was Howard's.  
  
Howard scanned his ID card again, the door unlocking. "You know.. I have made allot of progress, but I'm still missing a part of my research to complete the Combination Virus." "We'll see." Kai replied holding his pen and notepad ready.  
  
Inside Howard's room felt small, enclosed, but it was still large, just cluttered with boxes of papers and some computers on the floor. A few red lamps replaced regular white ones, lit up the room dimly. Howard turned on the white light fixed above the room, the standard florescent lighting in all of the laboratory's rooms. "Sorry, my subjects needed the light dim for them." Kai stood next to a black screened door, as Howard walked to his desk. Shifting through a stack of folders next to his computer, he sighed with some anxiety, holding a folder that contained the notes of his research, he was almost stalling, he didn't want to show Kai the documents, incomplete like this. "I'm waiting." Kai called to Howard. He took a breath and turned around with his folder "Alright. Here it is." walking to Kai and handing him the folder. He flipped through the pages. "I've recorded the progress of my subject, a Vampire Bat, chosen for its higher acute senses of hearing and smell." "Hmm." "I extracted the blood from it, separated the plasma and extracted a few strands of its DNA and uh.. combined it with the T-virus. I had the new combination frozen for a month to slow the reaction time. Then injected it into my bat three months ago." Kai looked up from reading the graphs of the document. "Wait.. you never told me that you used a sample of the T-virus. Howard, the supplies for that is limited and its the rules to always record how much and who takes the virus. Especially since you said you didn't have the missing part to complete it." "I know, but I needed it right away, without the waiting time. Even with it missing the subject is showing promising results." "Well.. where is it?" Right after he asked, a loud bang of the cage he was standing in front of shook and something grabbed him holding him against the cage. "What the fuck!?" Piercing screeching noises came from whatever was grabbing onto Kai, tearing into his clothes. The sound of a mad animal shook him and the cage. "Howard help me!" Frantically he elbowed the cage trying to get the animal off. "Wait! Don't!" "You'll kill him!" Kai looked up at Howard with a look of terror in his eyes as it widened. Howard was trying to rip away the clothing the creature was grabbing onto. "He's telling me I'm going to kill him?!" Kai though still horrified. With one hard jerk, Kai managed to slip out of his lab coat, escaping the claws of the creature. He turned around, looking at the creature, breathing hard. "Please calm down!" Howard pleaded to the animal. Shrieking and thrashing the shredded lab coat, jumping on the cage door wildly. The computer monitor behind Howard went beeping, a gauge reading the creature's heartbeat was going in a fast frenzy of peaks. "Stop!!" shouting at the creature, the computer suddenly stopped it's fast beeping, the creature stopped its thrashing on the cage, and in an instant the sound of its body hit the floor, the monitor showed flat line.  
  
Howard dropped to his knees in front of the cage. "No.." Kai, staring down at Howard, "You're.. fucked up.." deathly quiet, he opened the door behind him and ran out.  
  
Picking up the scattered papers of his long waited research of the animal that just died. "My work.. its all over." he dragged himself to his desk, sitting heavily in his chair, he sobbed. A while later, a video played on his monitor. He looked up from his head on his arms, and watched through blurry vision the replay of a file tape he watched everyday. The tape of the old Umbrella Research Center in Raccoon City. The tape showed parts of the lab, its many powerful bows, men working on different tasks. A view of a large humanoid shape came up. "Umbrella's most successful weapon.. the DNA I needed to stabilize the heart, came from that creature." Howard watched as it decapitated a few scientists after it escaped its open cell. "It's strongest weapon, but unstable, not controllable. I had the right damn DNA strand to correct the problem..." The video cut to a person shooting at the Tyrant with a shotgun, it falls. Then another shot of two people, the first figure was that woman, and a man, their faces too blurred to make out. Howard's eyes narrowed with anger, staring down at the two people finally gunning down and killing the Tyrant. The last pictures was of the two people running away from the building, an explosion following them. The last moment was of the man directly in front of the camera, his face was strong, his body injured from whatever attacked him. Howard studied the face of the man with resentment. "If it wasn't for him, I'd still have that one fucking sample I needed to complete my virus." He turned the monitor off, and stood up from his chair. Walking to a file cabinet the same height he was, he opened a drawer that was labeled "Research Subjects" he pulled out a stack of folders and set them on his desk, and shifted through them. Pictures of animals and graphs and data detailing the effects of the T-Virus after injecting them. "All aggressive, mutants." He flipped more pages, the experiments got stranger, larger animals being used "Sharks, frogs..hu..humans?" He reached files of new research done on human experiments. The list of names of people given various viruses, some even Umbrella's own scientists. Another new list of names appeared, each with a photo, a name and that they were put through several physical tests. "Huh, I guess they had the special stuff saved for these people." He flipped to the last page of inmates, one had the name "Billy Coen" He fingered the data under the name. "Ex-lieutenant..sentenced to death..reasigned transportation to the Umbrella Research Center in Europe.." To the file was something paperclip behind it. Howard unclipped it, and with a a drawn in breath, he stared at the picture "It's him!.." on the very bottom of the file was a declaration of death. It stated he died when his vehicle that was transporting him crashed, and signed below it was the name "Rebecca Chambers of STARS" that reported the statement. 


	3. Chapter 3

Rebecca's thumb scrolled down following a short list of words on a skinny pad of post-it notes. " Hmm.I have that..and that." Pointing to each lid of jars that sat on red child's seat of her cart. The store was empty, being early in the morning, a few carts being pushed by humming older ladies, humming their bouncy songs. Rebecca walked by an empty aisle, the tapping of her boots echoed on the tiled floor. She fingered some boxes on a shelf her height. Rows and rows of red and yellow, the regular dinner supplies. She wasn't much of a cook, so she grabbed some instant white rice. She tossed it in her cart next to a bag of frozen chicken. With a heavy exhale of breath, "Alright, that's ready." and headed for the front of the store with her cart   
  
Only one register was open with a wiry teenaged boy behind it. Rebecca pushed her cart behind a small old woman wearing a flowery print dress. The line wasn't long but every line always has that one person with a cart full of food trying to decide which of the same kind of cheese to put back. "Good morning dear!" turning around to face Rebecca the older woman looking up to her with a wide smile. "I don't see many young people doing grocery shopping this early. Come to think of it I've never seen you around here before." With a half laugh, she looked down to the cheery older lady, "Good morning, ma'am, I just moved here a few days ago. I'm trying to get things settled as quickly as possible." The older lady rubbed her index finger under her lip "Mmhmm, I see. It's nice to see someone who isn't lazy around here." she chuckled, "Where are you from dear?" With a hesitant stuttered "oh.." Rebecca answered. "Well, somewhere up north, I needed to leave that place, too much going on and such." Rebecca leaned on her arms on the cart's handle. "Home giving you some problems ey? That's why I left my home when I was young. Of course I'm not young anymore so I live here" The woman let out a laugh, and Rebecca followed with a softer chuckle.  
  
"Ma'am please choose already!" the teenaged cashier groaned slumping his head in his hand, supported by his elbow on weight counter. He mindlessly scanned can after can of soup, wishing the woman would make a decision with her final stacks of food. "Oh! I'll just go with the diet soda." the woman finally concluded. "A trip to the grocery store shouldn't be a quest!" he thought. With that, the cashier scanned the soda, and hurriedly bagged it, tossing it in the woman's cart. "Please...come again." he said taking the money she held out for him. She left and the older lady moved up and began taking her few items out of the cart and the boy scanned in a steady pace. "To buy Diet Coke or to not buy Diet Coke, that is the question!" the older lady recited. Rebecca chuckled, funny yet true, as this woman caused her to stay in the grocery store longer then she wanted. The boy bagged the lady's things and set it in her cart. "Have a nice day ma'am." She smiled at him, giving him her money. Then she turned around before leaving "I hope I get to know you better dear, enjoy your new home." Rebecca looked down at the softly smiling woman, and smiled back. "Thank you, I will." She left.  
  
Rebecca was next and pushed her cart and the teenaged cashier greeted her as she took out her groceries of tonight's chicken dinner. She thought as he scanned the food, about moving to a new home. A sunny, warm place, where it feels safe to life, unlike Raccoon City. A new start to try and forget what happened to her team, her friends. "How could something like that happen in this time? It doesn't seem real..and to almost die. I almost did, if I was alone." Rebecca stared strait unblinking with her thought not noticing her surroundings. "Miss?. Miss?" the cashier asked, and with a shake of her head her mind came back. "Oh I'm sorry." "Are you Okay?" he asked her again with concern. "Huh?..Yes I'm fine, I sort of zoned out." His concern left and a small smile replaced it "It's 23.55, miss." Rebecca reached in her cart for a small purse, opened it and took out some crumpled dollar bills and some change. She counted it, and had just enough for her groceries, "Here it is." handing the cashier her money. "Thank you." and took it and rang it on his cash register. He handed her, her bag and pushed the cart back into its corral himself. "Enjoy your day miss." Rebecca nodded to him and walked to the store's automatic doors.  
  
Stepping on the black rimmed mat, the double doors opened with a mechanical hum. In an instant she walked out, the shade and cool air from the grocery store was replaced with sticky, humid air of summer, and the white yellow light of the sun right above her. Rebecca shaded her eyes with one hand held up to her eyebrows and searched for a specific car in the small lot. "There it is." spotting her blue Corvette parked by itself a few rows away. She walked, and soon enough the heat bothered her. "What a change Florida is..I shouldn't have worn heavy pants." commenting to herself. Eventually she reached her car and peered inside. In the driver's side was a man with spiked brown hair sleeping on his side facing the passenger seat. "Chris fell asleep with the AC on again." She tried the door's handle, locked. Then she tapped the glass with her knuckles, "Chris wake up!" The man didn't stir from his comfortable position. Knocking repeatedly didn't work, but with one loud slap of her open hand, she struck the window, "Chris!" Right after, he sat up strait and turned to his window looking at the woman pointing to the door lock. He bent over his side with his outstretched arm and unlocked the passenger door. Rebecca opened the door and quickly sat down with her bag of groceries in her lap. "This feels much nicer then out there." with a relived sigh. "I'm sorry Rebecca, I guess I kinda dozed off, hehe." With a half laugh and smile she replied "It's okay. The line took longer then I thought." "I see." Chris said smiling at Rebecca quickly, he turned his already inserted key, started the car, and backed out of the space. "Really Rebecca, you get up this early to do your grocery shopping? It's way too early, and muggy." "I like getting things done early, and besides, it gets much hotter in the afternoon." said Rebecca, shifting the items in her bag. Their car drove though a large neighborhood, tall trees blocked the sunlight, leaving shadows of leaves glide over the hood of the car. Rebecca looked outside her window, they weren't driving fast, but it seemed sidewalks full of children running and playing in their small pools and sprinklers whizzed by in a blur. A few minutes later, Chris slowed down and pulled the car into a driveway of a one-story apartment complex. "We're here." he said, reaching a parking spot and turning off the car. Rebecca nodded her head, acknowledging, and they both stepped out of the blue car.  
  
"Let me carry that." Chris reached for the bag in Rebecca's arms and took it before Rebecca could answer. They walked on the shaded walkway of the building to the last door on the far right, Rebecca's door. Taking out her key, she unlocked the door, and walked inside. She walked to a large window near a bed, and opened the curtain, and light poured in the dark room. Rebecca walked back to where Chris was in the kitchen, he sat the bag on a small white dining table, and she helped him put away her things. "Chicken dinner?" he asked. "Yes, I bought some fresh vegitables to make it with, Id thought I'd make something nice to eat." "That sounds pretty good" said Chris, shutting the refrigerator door. Rebecca walked over to a pile of stacked boxes near the entrance door and folded her arms loosely together. "Hey, I'll help finish unpacking your furniture, and set up the dressers." Chris walked to her. "Okay, Chris." she said rather softly, looking towards the window. He sensed something was bothering her, and he put his hand on her shoulder. "Is something wrong Rebecca?" She looked up, and met eyes with a worried Chris Redfield. "No, no I'm fine, I'm just getting used to this new area, the heat." "Oh, I see." he said, noticeably disappointed. "Chris..Chris do you think we'll get back to normal, our live I mean. Like, before that..happend and we had ambitions to make a difference and passion in helping people, and careers and.." She stopped and looked down with a drawn sigh. "Hey.." Chris leaned his face closer to hers, "I promise things will get better. This was a good decision for you to move here." Lifting her head, she looked back at Chris. "I'm going to help you." he gave her a soft smile. "Thank you Chris." and gave a smile back. He took a breath and let go of Rebecca with a step back. "I have to be somewhere soon. I'll drive back down here in a few days to see you again okay?" "Okay, see you then." Chris grabbed a hanging jacked from a chair and tossed it over his shoulder, heading toward the door. Rebecca's safety went through his mind. She didn't have any close family to be with her, and his promise to himself was to watch over her and make sure she's okay. A promise made right before escaping Spencer Mansion. "I'll make her life better...everyone's better." he said to himself before walking out her apartment door and looking back at Rebecca one more time before he left for good..  
  
Rebecca walked to her half opened door to shut it. Right then was the mail carrier standing there with a stack of mail. "Good morning miss." the mail carrier said with a happy voice. "Good morning." He handed her a small stack of envelopes, "I believe these are yours." A small laugh escaped her mouth and took her mail. "Why..thank you." "No problem miss!" he replied and left to his next delivery.  
  
Walking inside, she shut the door behind her, and sat the small stack of mail on her table. Pulling out a chair and sat down with a yawn, "Maybe I woke up too early, I'm sleepy." Her fingers slipped inside the stack and pulled out one at a time each envelope. "Junk mail, how could I have junk mail when I just moved here?" Getting up, Rebecca grabbed her mail and walked to her bed, crawled ontop and sat on a pillow. She took a pink robe and pulled it over her head and hunched over the envelopes, she opened one. "One from the Medical School of Florida..." Rebecca skimmed the letter with enthusiastic hope, it slowly diminished by the time she reached the middle of the letter. A heavy sigh of disappointment, she laid the letter down gently. "How can I continue?" questioning aloud. Taking the rest of the unread mail, she set it on the small dresser next to her bed, closed the curtain behind the bed, and laid down. The robe felt soft on her skin under her head, and laid with eyes half open. The sound of the neighbor's wind chimes could be faintly heard through the bedroom window. The peaceful sound of a summer morning. Rebecca crinkled the sheets of her bed in her hand, half thinking of many things. Her life then, and now. An excited new medic in an elite police team of her hometown. Rebecca had studied relentlessly in her classes, hoping for a break and soon it comes. Chosen the best and trained hard, she couldn't let her new team down. Who would have thought that the police force she was apart of was nothing more then a mere experiment and that it would cost her friends' and many others lives. Rebecca sighed with a whimper, "Everyone's life changed after that..or just, ended." A feeling of regret that she couldn't help her comrades, but also that she herself was in the same predicament. She wouldn't have thought that an ex-con would be the one to save her life. He would help her to escape the fate of many, because of Umbrella. She never saw that man again, he drifted out of her life, he had to, and she had to make sure it stayed that way, by signing his own death certificate and close his case, freeing him. Billy would be safe, it was the least Rebecca could do. Her thoughts of Billy wandered into many questions as she drifted off to sleep, mostly of where he was now, if it had worked.  
  
A few hours later.  
  
The once sunny skies of the small town, turned to one giant black cloud that covered any sunlight and replaced it with rain and thunder. Rebecca turned over in her sleep, a light groan came out as she pulled the covers over herself. The rain beat hard on the glass windows and the wind howled. A sudden flash of light lit up her room and a crash of thunder shook as it struck nearby, Rebecca jolted out of sleep panting. Her arm reached for the nearby lamp and stumbled to turn it on, rubbing her eyes with her fingers, the lamp clicked and it was on. "I hate that!" With a loud groan from the thunder that had sent her heartbeat racing suddenly. She put her head in her hands and rubbed her forehead, and sighed softly. Another loud sound startled her, but it was the phone. "It's probably Chris." she said reaching for the ringing phone. She put the receiver to her ear.  
  
"Hello?"  
  
"Miss Chambers I assume?"  
  
"Yes?...Who is this?"  
  
"You may call me Howard. You have worked for Raccoon City Police?"  
  
"What? Why do you want to know?"  
  
"More specifically, the Special Tactics And Rescue Service. Am I right?"  
  
"..Yes.." Rebecca grew anxious but he had her curiosity.  
  
""Miss Chambers, I know of the..horrible events that Umbrella has caused that city, the outbreak of the T-Virus, the outbreak in Spencer Mansion..and of course Umbrella's Training Facility."  
  
"How do you..." Her mind was puzzled, why would he be calling to say this?  
  
"I am more interested in the Training Facility. Something important to me was in that building and you were there last. Well, you and someone else." Rebecca knew he meant Billy, but she couldn't give a response to him.  
  
"That...Tyrant you two killed..I needed that Tyrant.." he paused, "But Billy Coen has something of mine. I want it back."  
  
"He's dead!" Rebecca quickly answered, and stopped.  
  
"That death certificate, yes I know he died when his MP van crashed, right?" The man paused again before bursting out, " And he's alive! I know he's alive!" He lowered his voice back down again, "I know he's alive Rebecca, he's close to me. Umbrella's research wants him back, but more importantly, I do."  
  
"No! Wait!" The phone clicked dead, he was gone.  
  
Rebecca dropped the phone, stunned. A phone call out of nothing and suddenly its Umbrella again. "How could he have known..?" Her eyes turned toward her dresser where the phone was, and the stack of unread mail. She grabbed one, and glanced at it, something caught her eye. She looked at the envelope, and rubbed her thumb across the address. "Billy Coen.." turning it around, she opened the envelope, and pulled out the letter. 

  
  
Dear Rebecca,  
  
It's me Billy. I know it was a kind of deal not to contact each other since we last met, but I need to tell you some things. I moved out to Spain and hid low for a while right after I left Raccoon. I tracked down the report you filled out about me, the van, and my death. I know longer have anyone after me. But, another thing has come up that I know you should know. Here in Barcelona, another small Umbrella Facility has popped up, and they are passing themselves as a Cosmetics Facility from a TV interview I saw a few days ago. Here's a couple of pictures I've taken of the building and what I could get inside. I don't know yet if they are planning anything so far, but I plan to watch them and see what happens. I know this information will be useful for you and some of your contacts. Please be careful and alert Rebecca.  
  
I haven't forgot about you, Rebecca.  
  
Billy Coen   
  
"I haven't forgotten you either." she said quietly to herself, folding the note back. Rebecca sat on her bed in silence, looking at the letter and thinking. The rain outside was calming down, the lightning outside stopped, but it was still pouring heavily. "I just can't let them do this." Her eyes shut tight and quickly stood up, she rushed to her dresser across the room, opening a drawer and pulling out a notepad and a pen. Rebecca wrote for a few minutes and tore off the note and left it on her dresser, folded. Then she wrote "Chris" on the backside and set the pen down. Running back to her bedside, she took out a large duffle bag and grabbed her leather coat from its rack. Putting on the jacket and throwing the bag over her shoulder, Rebecca ran to her door and outside into the rainy night. 


	4. Chapter 4

Howard held his forefinger under his hairline, beads of sweat formed drops on thin strands of bangs. He tapped the phone on the desk, the dial tone emitting from the receiver. "Now what?" Howard asked himself, a genuine question, not fully realizing the call he made. True, he meant what he said about wanting those missing DNA samples from the prototype Tyrant. "What a waste." Howard said, grunting to get up off of his desk that he half laid for a few hours. His body felt weak, limp, worn out from what had happened to his project, and crying over it. He walked practically dragging himself across the room, the dim red light shadowed most of the scattered objects in the room. A hand on his eyes he groaned just about reaching the door to exit, when he stepped on something with a cracking sound. Under his shoe was the broken arm of his long awaited creation, well, even more broken after stepping on it. "Oh.." and soft agonized groan came from his throat. Howard kneeled down, and ran the tips of his fingers through the dead bat's matted fur. The beady eyes of the creature still laid open, glossy and frozen in a stare. His fingers brushed a few sheets of paper, then came across the folder Kai had dropped when he was attacked. Howard barely sighed gathering up the papers with the folder. Hunched over from half standing, Howard's foot stepped forward once, and several loud cracks came from under his feet, he had broken the frail finger bones of the bat. "Damn it!" hopping backward two steps, his fists clenched and kicked his foot into the cage bars with fury and a yell. "If it wasn't for him, if it wasn't for them..I wouldn't have lost. My. Life!" Kicking feverously at the cage, it banged and rattled as he continued to scream. His fist punched the wall and hit the light switch, the room suddenly filled with bluish white light. Howard stopped, wild-eyed and taking in heavy breaths. His hand curled up in a tighter fist, his muscles having now delayed pain. A silent "ow.." went through his mind but refrained from saying it allowed.  
  
"This place..reeks.." The body of his dead, now crippled bat started to give off a musky smell. "I've been in here too long. I need to get out." Howard threw himself on the wall of his room, dragging himself heavily to the door, his side forcefully pressed on the wall as he slid across.   
  
Kai somehow managed to close the door after escaping in a hurry, Howard noticed reaching the round metal doorknob with an outstretched hand. It turned and clicked and the door cracked open, outside light crept in, casting a lit line in the room, taking shape of the contents inside. Howard turned to his right, the white colored hallway was fully illuminated, and below his feet were a few drops of blood puddled on the clean tile floor. "Kai must have went back to the main lab." he thought. He turned to walk in the apparent direction that Kai went, but stopped midstep, a sudden horror rushed past his mind with realization of that attack. "Kai will say something about this..the rest of my work, they'll get rid of it! I must get to the Aviary before they do!" The Aviary what was nicknamed by the scientist who worked down there, was a high ceiling area that housed the most potently dangerous and largest animals for testing, complete with a caged walkway hung high above the actual pit where the animals where kept, a supposedly safe viewing area. It also held different stations below on ground level each for different instruments and specific procedures and experiments. Howard's other work was kept there, a few remaining vials of the T-Virus and Combination Virus he kept safely hid. "Kai will tell them everything..I have to get out of here and take my virus with me somehow.." Howard patted his black lab coat's pockets, nothing was in them. Then he remembered, he patted his nametag on his chest "There it is." a sigh of relief he found the key to the room in a hidden pocket behind his nametag. Turning in the opposite direction, Howard made his way to the Aviary located a few more levels below him.  
  
He walked briskly, his folders held under his arm in a messy manner. Passing the many open rooms wasn't easy, not looking suspicious at least. This hallway was darkened, and the only lights came from the rooms occupied by one or two scientists working in them. Finally, Howard got to the end of the twisting hallway, a few more yards and the door to the Aviary would be in sight. For a second, Howard stopped walking and noticed that the last couple of rooms were dark, "Noone must be in them." turning his head behind, he made a dash for the end of the hallway. Running for thirty seconds, he saw a green light above a windowless door. Howard reached the end, and put his hand on the door huffing heavily out of breath. The green light shown through the letters of the sign in front of it "'Inst. F-23'. The Aviary" Groping the middle of the door feeling for the door handle, his hand stopped when he found it. Howard took out the key, the shape of an old fashioned key, made of gold and a red and white accented the top of the key, the Umbrella symbol. Finding the keyhole wasn't hard, the green light cast a faint light on the door and reflected off of the metal of the keyhole. Howard inserted the key, turned and with a click, the door was unlocked.   
  
Meanwhile, Kai had rushed himself to the main labortory holding his arm in a protective hold, scratched severely by Howard's crazed bat creature's claws. "Damn him!" Kai cursed bursted out loud as pain shot throughout his injured arm. At 2 in the morning, most of the scientists were either at home or, if driven by an intense need to work, where in secluded rooms worked diligently on their research. "Kai! What happened?" a female voice came from an opened door. Kai turned his head to face the voice, and saw a woman scientist rushing towards him with concern. Kai looked up at her as she reached for his arm, blood starting to soak through the white sleeve of his shirt. "That looks horrible, how did it happen?" Kai, with clenched teeth answered "That's nothing, I just..scratched my arm on a nail sticking out of a wall." "Oh." sensing a lie, "Well, do you need bandages? I can get them for you." He cradled his arm closer to his body, "No, I'm fine. I can get it cleaned up in my own room. Just..I'll be fine, go home okay?" The woman scientist let go of his arm, and stepped back. "Okay Kai, I hope it's nothing bad." With that, she turned around and walked into the darkness, back to the elevator to leave the building.   
  
Groaning, Kai searched for his key in his pocket, found it and unlocked the door to his private small lab. The room's lights were already on making it easier to find a small sink located on a table connected to a wall. Tenderly, he rolled up his sleeve, revealing a large gash on his forearm. The blood was already half dried, but some still poured out in a steady stream. With his free hand, Kai turned the knobs on the sink for the water, and gradually stuck his arm under the lukewarm water. When the water touched his cut, Kai winced, drawing in breath through clenched teeth. After a few minutes of getting used to the water, he poured sanitizer on his wound, lathered it, and washed it off. He walked to his main desk and pulled a roll of bandages from a nearby First-Aid kit, and wrapped his wound tightly with it. Kai pulled out his office chair and slumped down on it with a loud sigh. "That idiot. In all these months I didn't know what he was doing. Then I find out he stole samples of the virus, making his own and creating monsters with it. Speaking of which what the hell was that thing, a bat? There's no telling if that..creature carries the virus and if it's capable of spreading it.." Kai gripped his bandaged wound with his hand. With a flash of anger Kai reached for a phone on his desk, "He won't be working on that experiment for long." Turing the phone over, he dialed a number and immediately the phone rang once, and someone answered. Kai held the phone to his ear.  
  
"This is Phimma, Kai. Identity number 004686. I need to speak with Superior." a few seconds went by and a man responded.  
  
"It's you. I needed those reports three hours ago, what is your reason that I do not have it in my hand?" The deep voiced man expected an excuse as he already knew why he was calling.  
  
"Sir, something went wrong trying to gather up the reports. You need to run a check on Allen, Howard, 0062885. I've found out that he has been stealing vials of the T-Virus and doing unaccounted experiments in his lab and in room F-23."  
  
"Hmm.." A low sound, almost a growl emitted from Kai's receiver.  
  
"What shall be done about him sir?" A few moments passed before the man spoke again.  
  
"You will tell him his secret project is no longer worth continuing, and the consequences for his thievery.." Kai kept silent as the man described the instructions to be given out to Howard.  
  
Howard shut the door behind him quietly. The entire room itself was dark, except for the caged walkway that had small lights aligned to the railings. Kai walked onto the walkway, his feet rattled the cage with each step he took. A long walk, he made it to the end, and there was a round open elevator atop hydraulics. He boarded it, and looked over the small control panel. Figuring it out wasn't hard, a few colored buttons each lit up with red, green, blue and yellow. "Green means 'Go' so.." he pushed the green button, and the hydraulics began to work, bringing the small elevator down to floor level. Howard stepped off, and the elevator went back up to the walkway.   
  
The room was enormous. It was divided by a tall fenced cage of iron bars for the pit of creatures on one side, and the small rooms of laboratories on the other. The pit was completely dark, only small outlines of shrubbery could be made out as it draped over the bars of the cage. In front of that, was a large wall, containing thick reinforced glass, for safe viewing. The labs were lit with small lamps posted on each door. Howard walked to the one nearest him. When he got to the door, he grabbed the door's knob, but something on the sidewall caught his eye. It was the light control panel. "Finally, I'm sick of all this darkness." A few flicks of his fingers and with each switch he's flipped, a new light came on. Howard flipped the entire first row of the panel, and each lab was lit along with half the room. "Hmm..I won't turn the lights on in the cage." a pause, "For now." He inserted his gold key again in the knob, turned it and opened the wooden door. The room was full of white florescent light from the ceiling, the electrical hum from each tube annoyed Howard the instant he had walked inside. The lab itself was small and compressed of space, neatly clean with a small amout of equipment on tow counter tops and a small laptop, each other small building was connected to each other with sliding metal double doors, easy access for scientists with full hands. Howard placed his folders on a counter top to his right side, along a few racks of sterile flasks he needed later. Howard slid his index finger on his belt, sliding it across slowly until he found a certain loop. A small grey key with a simple tooth was attached to his belt, he unclipped it. He held the key in his closed fist and made his way across the room passing the doors that opened automatically, and in each room he entered a new light on the ceiling turned on, making his destination more visible. After passing through six doors, he reached a room dimly lit and noticeably cooler then the previous rooms. On the walls were lined up glass cases, empty tubes and ones filled with different colors, each with labels of what it contained or which researcher it belonged to. Howard put his finger on the glass case, skimming for his own name while mumbling each name he passed by. "Allen. There it is." he exclaimed a few seconds later. He took his key out and inserted it a lock. Upon inserting it, a few more bulbs of light lit up, illuminating the container behind the glass case a dark red glow. Gently, he turned the container counter-clockwise and with a click, it came out of its case. "I have to hurry before this goes below its cooling point and evaporates." Howard slid the glass case back leaving the key in, unnecessary now to keep it, held the container in his hand and hurried back to the first room.  
  
Back in the main lab Howard set the container on the counter next to two flasks and opened a metal box containing surgical gloves. "I won't have to worry about inhaling in 'T' while its still semi frozen." The T-Virus was in a jelly like state inside its isolated vial next to Howard's Combination virus in a separate vial. Howard has concluded that his virus was only transferable in liquid form, he'd be safe as long as he didn't touch any of it with his bare skin. The flasks themselves where sterile by that of a locked lid that could only be opened when connected to a similar lid, that allowed liquid or any other matter to be poured in uncontaminated. Howard took the vial that contained his virus and carefully connected the top of it with the top of the flask. A small turn and the lock unopened, the contents of the vial poured slowly out, like watching jelly slide out gloppily. He had emptied the whole vial in the flask, and took out the one containing the T-virus from the container that held it. "I only need..a small amount." his hands were starting to shake as he connected the vial of 'T' to the same flask that now contained his virus. "About..half.." The virus poured in somewhat more easily. "It's almost thawed. It can only stay a liquid for an hour before evaporating.." Howard wiped his forehead with his free hand, now starting to sweat, sliding a few wet parts of his bangs behind his ear.  
  
Mixing the two viruses was complete, what he needed now was a case or something to conceal the new virus while he tried to sneak out of the laboratory. He kneeled down under the counter and opened two doors, sticking his hand inside. Shifting around a couple of scattered boxes and bottles of who knows what, Howard heard a set of footsteps walking in the lab door.  
  
"Howard..What are you doing?" Howard turned around in his kneeled stance. "Kai?" He stood up slowly, keeping a few feet distance between them. "How..How did you know I was here?" "It was pretty obvious if you weren't in your room upstairs, you'd be down here. Getting something. And it made it easier with you leaving the doors open, as I do not have a key to enter this area." Howard took his eyes off of Kai's own eyes and glanced down at Kai's newly wrapped arm. Kai noticed, "Your little monster happened to do this to me, I was lucky I escaped with my life, no thanks to you." Howard returned his eyes to Kai but stood with an open mouth ready to say something but he didn't know what. "That bastard better not be a carrier of a virus!" Kai blurted out, a sudden shift from calm to rage. "It, it was not." Howard managed to respond, if it was a lie, he didn't know himself if it was. Kai held his arm with his hand to his body, "In all this time, these months, you've been doing what? Making up false research papers in order to distract us from your real projects? Stealing viruses.." Howard cut him off, "I told you why! I needed it immediately and no questions!" He sighed, "This was all of my real research, I showed you everything." Kai's eyes narrowed immediately. "Then why are you down here? Are you planning on stealing more viruses or whatever else?!" Howard lowered his head, almost ashamed. "Great. Fine." Kai spoke up, speaking as if matter of factly, "This was all a plan to work on whatever it is you wanted then leave. You always thought you could be better then anybody else. Doing anything you could to get ahead in discoveries or ideas or now, research. I know you stole, I know what your plan to do. Take it and sell what you have down here and be creator of the most potent weapon created." Howard rose his head, an angry spark infused him. "I never stole! I never planned to sell this company's or my research for profit! But now..its my last option to do because you had come into my lab and mess with the one subject I was working on and killed it!" Kai clenched his teeth with a infurious growl at Howard. "Your psychotic self was more worried about loosing some freak monster then me dying because of it! But that doesn't matter anymore, no..Not just I who knows about this incident." Howard's body felt limp almost predicting what was to happen even before Kai would say the next word. "I contacted Superior, and his instruction was not to let you leave this building. Whatever it is you're hiding down here, they'll find it tomorrow morning, and, dispose of you for conspiracy." "No!" Howard rushed at Kai in a tackle but Kai's hands met with Howard's and stopped him from reaching his body. A struggle as the two scientists glared at each other, almost like rivals, but Kai bent his arm down and smashed his elbow in Howard's cheek. "Ahh!" Howard stumbled backward to the floor, slamming his arm on the wall and hitting his foot in a corner. A loud snap was heard, Howard bend his body in reaction to his foot, it was broken. Holding the lower part of his leg as tight as he could, tears swelled in his eyes as the pain sharply shot up his leg, Howard tried to hold it off. "You.."Kai out of breath, " If I find out I'm infected..I'll come back and kill you myself.." Kai then snatched the gold key off of the counter and walked out of the lab, shutting the door and locking it.  
  
A loud groan mixed with pain and lament escaped from Howard's throat. "They'll kill me, they'll kill me.." he rocked his body repeating that phrase while squeezing the pain in a effort to stop it. He could feel his heart beat in his ears, a thumping noise that made his neck throb with each beat. Twenty minutes passed, Howard kept his forehead to his knee, staring unblinking at nothing while tears still flowed from his eyes. The pain in his foot seemed to go away, rather ignored with the fact that he knew that Umbrella operatives would come in the morning, kill him, and take his research away for their own. Sweat beads formed and streamed down his temples almost as fluidly as his tears did. "I can't, I can't let them.." Howard turned his head to the side, his eyes half closed and looked up. The container, vials and flask was still sitting on the counter untouched even from the struggle he and Kai had. A sudden idea flashed in his mind. He placed an outstretched hand on the floor, the sweat from his palm stuck to the tile floor, keeping his weight in balance. Another hand on the ground, Howard kept his legs bent upright, and crawled to the counter that was a few feet away. He held onto the handles of the cabinet doors, and pulled his self up slowly to the top, and laying his arm on the counter top, his body supported by his elbow. As carefully as he could, he slid his unbroken foot underneath him, and gradually straitened his good leg, now shifting his weight to his leg. "If they think they can just..steal my life's work, they are wrong." His hand still kept his balance on the table, he used his free hand to grab the flask containg the Combination and T viruses to his chest. The components inside where almost no longer in a jelly state, it was now mostly a liquid. His hand reached for a plastic container and opened it. Inside was one last sterile needle in a plastic case. Howard tried to open the case but couldn't, and with one frustrated grunt he smashed the case into the hard countertop, breaking it open and freeing the needle. With a strain Howard reached for the flask and turned it on its side and held it with his hand supporting his body. He took the needle with is other hand, holding it upright he focused on the metal tip of the needle then, jabbed it into the top of the flask. Holding the neck of the flask and the tube of the needle, he drew the new liquid virus into the needle. Its dark blood red color created a line in the tube, separating it by deep red from the beige white color of the tube. More effort was needed trying to draw the virus, Howard's bangs poked in his eyes, sharpened from sweat. He closed his eyes tight, clenching his teeth, the needle's tube was finally filled. A heavy sigh and Howard pulled the needle out, and let the empty flask roll away from him. His arm still close to his body, he strained to roll up his sleeve high enough. "My last chance..I'll show them my success personally tomorrow. Umbrella will regret this.." Howard plunged the needle into his arm right above the bend in his elbow and let out a pained cry from the sharp tip of the needle puncturing his skin. He stared at the needle, watching his red creation slowly go inside him as it drained from the tube of the needle. The last drops of the liquid entered his body and the plunger in the needle reached the bottom. Howard placed two of his fingers on the injection site and let go of the needle. He had forgotten his injury to his foot and with a mezmorific stare at his arm, he turned his body stepping with his broken foot. A sharp pain and another loud crack emitted from his foot, "Ahh!" Howard screamed with pain and desperately grabbed the counter to avoid falling. Both of his legs bent in and with one more swipe of his hand, his hand hit the containers of the left over viruses and both crashed to the ground. Howard's head hit the ground with a reverberating blow and the last thing he saw were colored vials shattering upon impact. 


End file.
